Interview: Cam'ron lyric

Q: What advice would you give to anyone who wants to break into the rap game?

If you're not from New York or LA, I advise you [to] get there and be around the people that can get you where you need to be. Otherwise, no one will help you, so get out of the hood.

Q: You mention the hood — you were quoted as saying that your music is "not about the Harlem shakers or Bill Clinton on 125th St., [you] want people to see that Harlem is still ghetto." I will not pretend to know what Harlem is all about, nor will I pretend to know what life in the hood is all about, but is your record a good outlook?

I am [like] a newspaper; I am not a mayor, I am not a governor, I do not own any buildings... so what you get from me is the news, what goes down.

Q: Great point, but you do represent Harlem, so why not put a positive spin on it?

Oh, don't get me wrong, we have a bunch of basketball programs going on for the kids, but in terms of structure, we have a lot of renovations in Harlem right now.

¿ Quick fact ?Fellow Roc artists like Jay-Z and Beanie Sigel dropped by to lend their vocals to Come Home With Me, as did Cam'ron's crew, The Diplomats. In addition to music, Cam'ron appeared as Rico in the 2002 film, Paid in Full.

Q: What was it about Roc-A-Fella, Damon Dash or Jay-Z that made you want to join the team?

You know, I grew up with Damon, we were from the same neighborhood — few people know that Damon was managing me when I was at Epic. So being as smart as he is and me being a great talent, we felt that Epic was f***ed up and I made it real uncomfortable and tried to come over here.

Q: You say Epic was a pain; what advice would you give to someone in your predicament?

If you do not want to be somewhere, I cannot tell you what to do because I do not know the details. I was in a seven-figure deal but I did not want to be there, that's all...

Q: What are your plans for 2003?

On March 25th, 2003, I have a Diplomats album [called Diplomatic Immunity], and then I should have my new album out in July, [called] Purple Haze...

Q: Hendrix fan?

No, everyone asks me that... I was puffing on that when I did the album...

Q: Hendrix, purple haze... it's all inspiration. Thanks for your time, and best of luck, in or out of Harlem!